History once again showed that BB was right, I can still remember the posters who thought $8MM/yr was too low and were violently insulted by the final deal the Pats offered. Granted its all 20-20 hindsight, but the signs were there. While Welker's catches and importance to the offense was still there, his drops were increasing yearly, his catch radius was shrinking, and his quickness ebbing, He had one more very productive year with Manning, but even then at the end you could see it slipping away, This year he was just a shadow of his form self. You're right Rob, it was sad.
Wes eventually will get his day to be honored at Gillette, He certainly is one of the all time Pats, A guy who should be remembered for his fearless and productive play. But the fact is the Pats knew his time was about up and wanted him back anyway. When he left they replaced his production without a misstep with their 2nd option, and in the end wound up with a younger more versatile player for a bit less.
